What's scary is that people have spent decades putting momentum behind the idea that technology is an educational force, and now we have to wonder how far in the opposite direction that might have been wrong.
If it's not wrong, we can at least see now that computers are like cars and take people where they're going faster, whether they're going straight ahead or into the gutter.
Directions of hope:
1) Maybe the spread of these technologies is in fact spreading skills that will enrich lives and economies. If so, can we identify what those are and stop wasting time with other things? (I don't get the impression at all that modeling and programming are propagating as fast as games and websurfing)
2) Maybe this is indeed the end of faithfully hoping technology will have a net educational benefit. If so, what is the next thing to try?
I think you're conflating giving technology to teachers and giving technology to students.
It seems nutty to me to imagine that just giving students computers is going to provide an educational benefit, although apparently some people would disagree. But providing schools with better technology for guided instruction (e.g. computer labs, ancillary instructional material available online, homework management software) sounds totally sensible.
If it's not wrong, we can at least see now that computers are like cars and take people where they're going faster, whether they're going straight ahead or into the gutter.
Directions of hope:
1) Maybe the spread of these technologies is in fact spreading skills that will enrich lives and economies. If so, can we identify what those are and stop wasting time with other things? (I don't get the impression at all that modeling and programming are propagating as fast as games and websurfing)
2) Maybe this is indeed the end of faithfully hoping technology will have a net educational benefit. If so, what is the next thing to try?